Making time off and traveling is fun, relaxing and sometimes expensive. How to take an ideal holiday in the sun a bit quicker? The solution is simple - apply for an airmiles credit card. It gives cardholders an excellent opportunity to earn free airline tickets, hotel stays, car rentals and other travel related incentives just for making everyday purchases. It is not uncommon for cardholders to earn 1-2 free roundtrip airline tickets each year. If you're dreaming about a perfect honeymoon in the Maldives, sunbathing in Spain, or skiing in the Swiss Alps, your airmiles credit card can make your dreams come true.
Airline reward credit cards, also called frequent flyer credit cards, are popular both for business and leisure travelers because they let you save a great deal of money and go on vacations for free.
Some years ago, the only way to earn airline miles was to buy an airline ticket. Fortunately, the times have changed. You can quickly earn miles or other travel rewards by making your regular purchases with a frequent flyer credit card. It is an excellent way to turn your expenses for eating in restaurants, groceries, clothes, long distance phone calls, mortgage and stock trades into free travel incentives.
Once you have decided to apply for an airmiles credit card, you need to make a thorough research to find the plastic that suits you most. However, there are a lot of beneficial programs out there. Shopping around and looking for the perfect match can be a difficult task. The tips below will highlight the main terms and features you need to take into consideration:
- In almost every situation, it's a waste of money to apply for more than one airmiles credit card. Of course, all rewards programs are tempting. But if you have 10 travel rewards credit cards in your pocket, you may not accumulate enough points and get stuck deciding what card to pay with and how much you have already spent on each plastic.
- Have a close look at standard credit card features, like fees or interest rates. If an airmiles credit card comes with a high APR, your rewards program won't be an advantage. In this the case the finance charge can eat away the rewards you earn.
- Decide what you're looking for in a credit card besides an attractive rewards program. Maybe you want to make a balance transfer, receive an instant approval or get 0% intro APR on purchases. It will help you make the right choice.
- Analyze the miles accumulation system. Some travel rewards credit cards give you more points if you make purchases in certain locations. For example, The Virgin Atlantic American Express card from Bank of America offers the cardholders to earn 3 miles per dollar spent with Virgin Atlantic Airways and 1.5 mile per dollar spent in retail purchases.
- Look for additional credit card benefits and freebies: some plastics offer bonus miles for the first purchase or just for signing up. Moreover, there are credit cards that provide free companion tickets. They are a good choice if you're going to travel with a partner.
- Read the fine print to find out any restrictions: is there a limit to the number of miles you can accumulate per year or miles expiration dates?
- Some credit card issuers have "blackout dates" when you can't redeem your mileage. These dates usually correspond with U.S. holidays and summer months when most people go away.
|
